Live Blog: FC Metz vs. Paris Saint-Germain

Paris Saint-Germain's Argentinian forward Angel Di Maria gestures as he celebrates after scoring a goal during the French L1 football match between Angers and Paris Saint-Germain on April 14, 2017 at the Raymond Kopa Stadium in Angers, western France. / AFP PHOTO / FRED TANNEAU (Photo credit should read FRED TANNEAU/AFP/Getty Images)

Unai Emery’s Paris Saint-Germain will have to deal without their own support for the second of two straight away matches. PSG are away to Philippe Hinschberger’s FC Metz at the Stade Saint-Symphorien. Paris currently have a 23-5-4 record (74 points) but even if they win as expected on the road, Monaco have a superior goal differential and have a game in hand.

As for Metz, they are battling relegation and while a loss will not affect their current standing on the table (they are 9-9-14, 36 points), they will have a nervous home stretch coming if they don’t pull off an upset victory at home in what should be a packed house on Tuesday. This match is taking place this week due to the Coupe de La Ligue final between Paris Saint-Germain and AS Monaco forcing a reschedule.

This is a rare league match going on in the middle of UEFA Champions League action. Monaco are wrapping up their UCL quarterfinal tie with Borussia Dortmund, while Olympique Lyonnais have to deal with Turkish powerhouse Besiktas JK in the UEFA Europa League. Lyon have had a difficult weekend, including an unwanted confrontation with supporters from relegation-bound SC Bastia. Their match was abandoned due to fan interference and a collective lack of security at the Stade Armand Cesari. The Ligue de Football Professional (LFP), who are responsible for issuing PSG’s own fan sanctions, are expected to lay the hammer down on the Corsican club’s lack of institutional control on the weekend. Details on this confrontation will be expanded in this live blog.

Your matchday hashtags are #FCMPSG and #Ligue1. Kickoff is scheduled for Tuesday, Apr. 18 at 9:30 a.m. PT/12:30 p.m. ET. The Live Blog begins at 7 a.m. PT/10 a.m. ET. Keep it right here on The Stoppage Time, powered by Azteca Soccer, for more world football news. Stay connected on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.

Jo-Ryan Salazar is a writer for The Stoppage Time, a soccer blog powered by Azteca Soccer. A supporter of the Los Angeles Galaxy since 1996 and a committed supporter since 2002, Jo-Ryan also follows Chelsea FC, Melbourne Victory, FC Tokyo and Paris Saint-Germain. Apart from soccer, Jo-Ryan is an administrative assistant for a local nonprofit in Long Beach, California and also does photography, photo-editing and fictional writing.